


Rebirth

by shadowpyxy_pyxydust



Series: Many Lives, Many Selves, One Partner [7]
Category: Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy XIII Series
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe- No Supernatural, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-08
Updated: 2016-05-08
Packaged: 2018-06-07 05:30:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6787384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shadowpyxy_pyxydust/pseuds/shadowpyxy_pyxydust
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A new home. A fresh start. Will her pain ruin this, too? Or will she find her hope again? An undesired move hints at better things to come.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Rebirth

**Author's Note:**

> Statements in double quotes are speech, statements without quotes are thoughts, and single quotes are special based on their context (onomatopoeia, euphemism, quoting another, etc.). 
> 
> For HopeRai Week 2015. Prompt: Awe

## Estheim Residence, Palumpolum

The silver haired boy looked at the pictures his parents and Mr. Katzroy laid before him on their kitchen table. Two girls, pink haired and blue eyed, stared back at him. The smaller one had a melancholy smile as she stared beyond the person holding the camera. The taller glared into the camera as if daring it to capture her image. Arms crossed, the elder sister hovered protectively next to the younger.

 

"Ummm." Hope fiddled with the yellow wristband tied around his left wrist. Soft green eyes flicked from the calm hazel of his dad, the hopeful jade of his mom, and the pained brown of their guest, then back to his dad again. "They'd be like my sisters?" He shifted his gaze back to the images before him. T _hat would be weird. They're about my age._ He'd known his parents were looking to foster other kids. He'd expected the kids to be younger by at least a few years, though. The two sisters' ages, twelve and fifteen, surprised him almost as much as his parents seeking his opinion on the idea.

 

"Not exactly." Sazh cradled the photo of the Farron sisters. A grief-stricken sigh escaped. "Fostering isn't adoption, and you're not related by blood that anyone knows of." A slender finger traced the outer edge of the picture. He then set it back down. "I can't take care of them anymore. Not after...." His voice tapered off, constricted by the loss of his wife. "Dajh is all I can handle."

 

Nora Estheim reached over and rubbed Sazh's shoulder. "It's alright. You've done the best you can for the girls, and you're doing the best you can for them now." Nora's clouded gaze met her husband's. Bartholomew and Sazh knew each other from work. Nora and Hope had met Sazh a few times over the years, but Sazh's wife had never accompanied him on his trips so they'd not known her. Sazh was a strong man, devoted to family to a fault. It ate him up inside to acknowledge he couldn't provide what the two lost girls needed without his wife to help him. Seeing him in such a state distressed Nora to no end.

 

"It's up to you, Hope." Bartholomew patted Nora's hand on the table. "This is our house and our family. We make this choice together." His steady gaze bored into Hope encouraging the teen to be honest. "Sazh has asked us to take the Farron sisters in. They'd be part of the family in the same way very good friends become family." He smiled a bit at his son. "You're all too old to raise as brother and sisters, anyway, so don't feel too weird about it."

 

Hope blushed a bit at his dad's comment. _Transparent as always._ He looked at the other pictures spread on the table. One showed Serah, the younger sister, playing in the surf in Bodhum. Another showed the elder sister reading on a park bench, unaware of the camera. _Her name's Lightning. What kind of name is 'Lightning', anyway?_ In another Serah was devouring an ice cream cone and had managed to get some on her nose. A stifled laugh burst forth from the fourteen year old. A fourth depicted Lightning sulking in front of a chocobo during a trip to Nautilus. His smile turned into a frown.

 

"Hey, Sazh. Why is Lightning always unhappy or oblivious in these pictures?" He looked at the older man waiting for his answer.

 

"Well. Lightnin' took her parents' deaths pretty hard, and she takes her responsibility to her sister seriously." Sazh glanced away toward Hope's parents. Hope's natural curiosity was further piqued when his parents nodded encouragement before Sazh continued. "She doesn't like her picture being taken. She says it's too childish."

 

Hope was surprised. "But, she's fifteen, right? She's only a year older than me." A smile flitted across the man's lips then vanished as he answered Hope's question.

 

"You have to understand Soldier Girl." The Estheims looked at him in confusion. "I call Lightning Soldier Girl because she **is** so serious and regimented. She has a hard time having fun. She's no-nonsense and has a...uh...," here Sazh broke eye contact, "bit of a temper." He matched gazes with them again. "That's gotten her in trouble with the foster care agency, and that's why I'm asking you all to take them in instead of pushing them back into the system like most would. You're registered with their agency, and if the girls are already placed, the caseworker won't fight it." Sazh sighed again. "She and Lightnin' don't see eye to eye on most things."

 

Eyes widened, startled. Hope kept his thoughts to himself. _A 'bit of a temper?' Enough to intimidate the caseworker? What would that mean for us?_ He took the picture showing the girls together and looked at it again. Lightning's protective hovering by Serah struck a chord in the boy. _I wonder if she'll protect me the way she does Serah. It would be nice to not be on my own._ Decision made, he turned to his parents and Sazh. "I like the idea."

 

Nora's relieved grin brightened the room. "It's settled, then. When do you think we can meet them, Sazh? They have to agree, too." She turned sparkling eyes on the man beside her.

 

"We've discussed the situation at home, and Lightning has been chomping at the bit like a chocobo on greens to run out on her own." The middle aged man held his hand up to forestall any concerns. "Don't worry. I put that thought to rest when I reminded her the social workers would separate her and Serah by placing her in a group home while her sister went into a regular home placement if she did something like that."

 

Bartholomew and Nora exchanged glances. Hope noticed and started to worry at their pensive expressions. _If she wants to be on her own so badly, that doesn't bode well for us._

 

Sazh sensed the same thing. "Lightning won't leave Serah. If Serah agrees, Lightning will come with her."

 

"That's not very convincing, Sazh." Bartholomew's even tone hid a rising concern. He worked long hours, and if the older sister was as much of a handful as Sazh implied he wasn't sure this was a good move for his family or the girls in question. His wife caught his concern immediately.

 

Nora spoke again. "Bartholomew, the girls need a stable home where they feel safe." She placed her hand on her husband's arm again while reaching her other hand to Hope, who grasped it. "They've suffered a horrendous loss, and Lightning is only watching out for her sister while trying to protect herself. We can provide a safe place where they can heal." She smiled.

 

"Alright. If **both** girls agree, we'll sign the paperwork and take them in." The elder Estheim looked steadily at his friend. "If either of them are reluctant or refuse, we'll honor their wishes."

 

"Fair enough." Sazh held his hand out for Bartholomew to shake then shook hands with Nora then with Hope. As he walked out the door, his relief was reflected in his expression and his thoughts. _There you go, girls. I got you a home just like I promised. All_ _ **you**_ _have to do is behave, Lightning._

 

## Katzroy Residence, Bodhum

"What do you mean we have to meet with these people?" Lightning's sharp tone cut across Sazh's explanations like glass. "We're perfectly fine here, Sazh." She turned to level her aqua blue gaze on her guardian. _No point in making another move anyway. No one else_ _ **wants**_ _m—_ _us._ She ignored the emotional stab the thought dealt her.

 

"No. You're not, Lightnin'." Sazh sighed.

 

"I'll just have to look out for me and Serah then." Lightning flung her empty overnight bag to the head of the bed before flopping at the foot. "The GC is hiring...."

 

"You're not entering the military at **fifteen**!" Aggravation rose in Sazh quickly. _This is why I can't keep you. I get too frustrated too easily. And I'm just too tired. I can't keep up with this girl!_

 

"I'm not entering the Corps! I'm just gonna work with them until I can join."

 

"You have school to finish first, Soldier Girl." The older man lifted a hand to place on the teen's shoulder. She stood abruptly and moved away from him. _Standoffish as always._ Shaking his head, he let his hand fall. "The Estheims will be here any minute, now, and we're going to spend the weekend with them so you can get to know each other." He shook a finger at her. "You're going to be on your best behavior. Y'hear?"

 

"Yeah. Whatever." The older Farron crossed her arms over her torso and turned away.

 

Faced with her unrelenting back, Sazh decided to treat her recalcitrant attitude as a positive. "Good. Now pack your bag, and we'll call it good." He left the room to the two pink-haired girls.

 

Serah shook her head at her sister. "Light. Let's try." Her gaze on the floor, she continued. "I don't want to be taken from you or sent somewhere else by myself." Tears raced down her cheeks.

 

Lightning looked over. Her sister's tears wrung her heart. _I'm sorry. This is my fault. I'll protect you, Serah._ She walked over, sat next to the twelve year old, and wrapped her arm awkwardly around the other girl. "Alright. We'll give this a try." A twisted smile struggled to right itself. "Help me pack?"

 

Wiping her tears with trembling hands, Serah nodded and allowed a shaky grin to appear. "You know it." She bounced to her feet and strode to her sister's dresser. Lightning calmed as Serah's voice gained strength. "Left on your own, you'd forget something." The younger pulled open the top drawer and began pulling out socks and underclothes.

 

"I would not." Lightning stood and started to stuff her clothes into her pack. She watched as Serah moved to the closet. A knock at their front door broke the quiet that settled between the sisters. _Great. They're here._

 

"Girls! Get yourselves down here! The Estheims are here!" Sazh's bellow echoed up the stairs. The sound of the door opening soon followed.

 

"Go ahead, Serah. I'll be down in a minute." Lightning gave her sister a gentle push toward their door. Serah nodded and skipped out the door and down the stairs. Lightning heard her soft voice tell their guests and Sazh that Lightning was just finishing up her packing and would be right down. She continued to pull clothes from the closet muttering all the while. "I don't know why we have to leave. I thought Sazh **wanted** us." She sighed and fought her tears back. _I thought I'd found a place to belong._

 

Lightning finished her packing. She gathered her composure and slung the bag over her shoulder. The fifteen year old young woman, no longer a girl, walked heavily toward the undesired company. She stopped within the shadows of the stairwell to watch Sazh's guests. Their easy familiarity made her cringe. _Friends, I guess. That explains a lot._

 

Quietly, Sazh's Soldier Girl observed the Estheim family. The man was reserved even as he chatted with Sazh. His bespectacled face spoke of a solemn nature. The petite woman next to him was speaking with Serah, who seemed very comfortable in their presence. A frisson of betrayal coated the elder sister's insides at the sight. Narrowed blue eyes moved on to the petite boy who resembled his mother standing in his parents' shadows. She gave a start as she met curious green eyes. Her eyes widened when he sent her a clandestine wave and shy smile. She narrowed her eyes again in threat and was surprised when all he did was smile wider. _What is_ _ **his**_ _problem?!_

 

Another knock sounded at the door. Lightning jumped, startled a third time in as many minutes much to her embarrassment. She quickly spoke up, "I've got it." Her sense of outrage quieted as the adults were caught by surprise, and Serah stifled a giggle behind her hands. _It's not all bad if Serah can laugh._

 

The fifteen year old walked to the door and pulled it open without looking. On the other side stood her and Serah's caseworker, Jihl Nabaat. Lightning's entire body stiffened.

 

Hope watched the older girl glide toward the door and open it. _She's amazing. So calm and collected._ He took a few steps toward her when he noticed her abrupt change in demeanor. _What happened?_ The boy stopped cold when he heard her clipped words directed to the statuesque woman on the other side of the threshold.

 

"What are **you** doing here?" Frigid words laced with a spark of threat broke the silence with bitter intent. Hope was struck by the similarities between the confrontation unfolding in front of him and a storm with lightning crackling to the ground alongside falling ice.

 

Sazh approached and tried to run interference between the two women at the door. "Now, Lightning, why don't you go say hi to Bartholomew and Nora while I speak with Ms. Nabaat?" The stranger's olivine eyes crinkled in the corners as she removed her glasses. She looked up and into the house. Lightning stiffened further which Hope didn't think was possible.

 

Lightning refused to budge. "Not until she answers my question." Her hostile tone brought the elder Estheims and Serah to the door as well. Serah reached out and grasped her sister's hand. Hope noticed she calmed down once that happened.

 

Ms. Nabaat tapped her chin with the arm of her glasses keeping her focus on Sazh. "Why don't we all have a seat? I need to have a little chat with the Estheims before they can take custody of the Farron girls." She turned a mocking gaze on the elder sister. "Full disclosure **is** the law."

 

 _What is she talking about?_ Hope watched Lightning's response to the older woman's taunting. _Is she ok?_

 

White-hot rage flashed in Lightning's eyes before her shoulders drooped in defeat. This wasn't the first time Jihl Nabaat had done something like this—walked into a prospective foster home and used the words 'full disclosure' to justify tearing what little stability she and Serah had away from them. _Why can't she just leave well enough alone? Fucking bitch!_

 

The elder sister pulled the younger along behind her toward the living area. They sat huddled together in the far corner of the couch. This time Serah wrapped her arms around Lightning in comfort. Sazh followed close behind and sat in a chair. He gestured his guests onto the couch and the loveseat.

 

For his part, Hope did not like what he saw. Worse, he couldn't decipher his parents' thoughts on the matter. It was a toss up if their bewildered expressions stemmed from Ms. Nabaat's surprise visit, Lightning's sudden attitude change, or Sazh's quietly fuming countenance. _Maybe it's all three. We didn't tell the agency we were meeting with Sazh, Lightning, and Serah today. So how did they find out?_ The teen settled into a spot on the couch close to Lightning while his parents took up residence on the loveseat where they could watch all parties to the discussion.

 

He almost wished the older girl would glare at him like before when she refused to meet his eyes. Serah caught his gaze and shook her head a bit in warning. He gave a slight nod. _Right. Let's not make her any more uncomfortable._ He turned his attention to the caseworker watching his parents like a hawk.

 

"You may be surprised to hear that Cl—" Jihl stopped, eyes widening, as a low-level, feral growl escaped the girl in question. "I'm sorry." She cleared her throat in an effort to regain control of the conversation. She started again. "You may be surprised to hear that **Lightning** ," her tone scoffed at the girl's chosen name, "has been in foster care for eight months. In that time she has bounced herself and Serah through twelve foster homes and had two adoptions rescinded while in process." Her eyes crinkled at the corners again as Lightning flinched at the honest, yet horrifically deficient, assessment.

 

Hard eyes and false sincerity met his parents' concerned faces. "Every one of the families was more than willing to keep Serah. It was Lightning who was the troublemaker, the problem child." She looked at the sulking girl. "It was Lightning who...."

 

Visibly upset, Sazh stepped in. "Now wait just a minute...."

 

"Am I wrong? Am I lying? I have the girls' files right here with me." Jihl nodded as Sazh sank back into his chair demoralized. "The Estheims have the right to know the temperaments of the children they're wanting to foster, and I have the responsibility to disclose everything relating to the girls' behavior."

 

Hope seethed as he watched the older girl sink into herself further. Normally a placid person, the depth of his anger and frustration surprised him. He stole a glance at his parents and was gratified to see his mother watching Lightning's reactions as well. _Mom will set this right. She always does._ He turned his gaze to his father. His optimism died upon seeing his father carefully considering Ms. Nabaat's words.

 

"Ms. Nabaat. What, exactly, has Lightning's behavior been like in the past?" Bartholomew was careful to keep his voice neutral. Hope's glare did not go unnoticed by the man. Neither did Lightning's stoic retreat into her sister's protective embrace.

 

"Well. There was the time she destroyed every dish in the house of her first foster home in a fit of anger. According to the family's report, one of their children teased her as children tend to do and she overreacted." Jihl looked consideringly into the distance. Nora's lips thinned in disapproval. Whether of the destruction or the 'teasing' and how it was handled, Hope couldn't tell. He watched, helpless, as Lightning began to tremble.

 

"Then there was the time she got into three fist fights at school in a week. She said it was because they were bullying, but the teachers said there was no evidence of bullying, and there was no record that she spoke to either her foster family or reported it to school authorities." The woman looked at the now-furious teen girl. A slight smile tipped her lips up as Lightning fisted her hands. "The injuries sustained by two of the children involved in the altercation warranted emergency medical treatment." Bartholomew gazed at Lightning as if he was looking at her for the first time.

 

Nabaat turned her attention back to Nora and Bartholomew. "She's attacked me on several occasions. You heard her defiance just minutes ago." She sighed. "That's how all our confrontations begin."

 

Lightning couldn't take it anymore. She wrenched herself away from a sobbing Serah. The Estheims, even Sazh, were taken aback by the sudden shift from passive to aggressive. They all sat frozen as the fifteen year old stormed into Jihl's personal space. Her eerily quiet words clashed with the clear threat she presented. "Why don't you just say it, Nabaat?" She spat.

 

Jihl countered coldly, "That's ' **Ms.** Nabaat'." She stood her ground against the enraged young woman before her.

 

Lightning hissed the rest as Hope listened, dumbfounded. "I'm a fuck up. Fine. Whatever." Serah flung herself from the couch before Hope could stop her and raced up the stairs. The girls' bedroom door slammed shut.

 

The elder sister's voice began to rise, cracking from emotion along the way. "Why do you have to do this to Serah, too? Why can't you just **leave us alone?!** "

 

Sazh spoke up and tried to defuse the situation. "Lightnin'. Come on, now...."

 

"Save it, Sazh!" Her sharp tone cut him off.

 

Bartholomew's brows rose toward his hairline in surprise. His son smirked at the reaction. _That's right, dad. She's_ _ **not**_ _defenseless. Why didn't anyone else see that in the pictures?_

 

"Respect is required from you, girl." Jihl glared at her. She shifted her attention to Bartholomew, the most sympathetic person in the room. "Do you really want someone as volatile, as **unstable** , as Lightning Farron in your home? With your son and wife? Imagine the...."

 

This time it was Hope's tolerance that was exceeded. "There's nothing wrong with her!" Hope ignored his father calling his name. _You taught me to fight for what matters, dad. You can't stop me, now._

 

"Why don't you just leave her alone, like she said?" Lightning watched the smaller boy confront her nemesis on her behalf. His ferocious sincerity left her speechless.

 

"You are too young to understand...." Hope took a page out of Lightning's book and cut the woman off.

 

"To understand you're a bully and hate a fifteen year old girl for no good reason?" He glared at Jihl. "I understand **plenty**. I deal with people like you every day in school." Hope turned his glare on his parents. "You said I had a say, too. I say Serah and Lightning live with us if that's what they want."

 

Bartholomew gazed at his son, a conflicting mixture of pride and torment swirling in his eyes. "Hope. Son." Torn between his morals and his fears, he floundered to a stop.

 

Nora reached over and placed her hand over his. "No, Bartholomew. Hope is right." Mrs. Estheim turned to the young woman caught between her fight and flight instincts. "We can provide a safe place for these girls to heal if they wish to live with us." She turned back to her husband. Green eyes steady on hazel, she looked at him, all the love and pride she felt for him shining brightly.

 

Bartholomew closed his eyes and nodded. He turned to Jihl. "We make these decisions as a family, Ms. Nabaat. I'm sure you can relate." His quiet sarcasm was not lost on anyone, least of all the sisters whose fate rested in his family's hands.

 

Jihl bowed in acquiescence. "Suit yourself. Once the papers are signed, you're responsible for the girls for at least a year. That's agency policy once a child exceeds the caseworker's 'reasonable placement' numbers."

 

Nora nodded and murmured, "Of course." A wry smile pulled the corners of her lips up as the disgruntled caseworker left to get the paperwork from her vehicle.

 

Serah crept down the stairs and stopped in the shadows to watch the others. She noticed Lightning stood gazing with bewildered wonder at Hope. He returned the elder sister's regard with a triumphant grin. Serah giggled at the sight. She slowly approached her sister. "What do you say, Sis? Shall we give it a try?"

 

Lightning shook herself out of her stupor. "Yeah. I guess so." She smiled. "It can't hurt. Right?"

 

"That's quite the commitment, there, Soldier Girl." Sazh wrapped both girls up in a hug. "You sure you're gonna survive?"

 

A pained grimace passed over Lighting's expression. "It's what I do, Sazh."

 

Hope edged closer and linked his hand with hers as Serah did the same on the other side. The teen boy took comfort in the gentle smile on Serah's face even as Lightning looked at him with an emotion somewhere between affront and astonishment. He smiled softly at her.

 

Jihl Nabaat returned with the forms. Sazh, the Estheims, and the Farron sisters all finished the bits they were required to before Sazh gleefully escorted the caseworker out the door. Once that was accomplished, he looked at his guests. "Well, we ready to get this weekend started?"

 

"Yeah." The teens spoke together. The rest of their company laughed at their embarrassment.

 

Lightning had one last thought before walking out of the door to begin yet another journey. _Maybe_ _ **this**_ _time things won't be so bad._


End file.
